In the 100 Slavic Novels collection, we announce the publication of new novel Pijavke (Leeches) by David Albahari, a Serbian writer, translator, and academic regarded as one of the most respected and influential authors of the late 20th century.

Translated by Mateja Komel Snoj, Pijavke is a historical novel about the Jewish community in Zemun and, above all, a harrowing exploration of anti-Semitism, identity, and contemporary paranoia. In the year marking the 20th anniversary of the 100 Slavic Novels Collection, the project continues to foster cultural exchange among Slavic countries.

An unnamed narrator—a writer and author of controversial newspaper articles—accidentally witnesses an unusual event on the Zemun embankment. His curiosity about what actually happened, if it happened at all, leads him to a mysterious young Jewish woman. At the same time, he comes across an astonishing manuscript containing Kabbalistic texts. The narrative grows increasingly complex, guiding the reader from everyday life in Belgrade in the 1990s into the history of the Jewish community of Zemun and the secrets of Jewish mysticism.

Amid a whirlwind of conspiracies, mathematical puzzles, and the narrator’s paranoid attempts to escape the rise of anti-Semitism, the novel culminates in a single, breathtaking narrative flow at a writing desk on the other side of the world.

Pijavke is a novel that, through its story, atmosphere, and magical interplay between reality and the fantastic, occupies a special place in Albahari’s oeuvre. It confirms his distinctive style and his position in contemporary European literature, offering readers a tense and intellectually demanding reading experience.